I had to share this amusing (but unfortunate) story involving the temporary detention and interrogation of a delegation of Pakistani officers at Dulles yesterday. Sadly, the incident highlights the fact that a misunderstanding and poor decision-making by a flight attendant and security guards can set back relations between two countries. Despite the billions of dollars we donate annually in aid to Pakistan (particularly in the wake of the recent flooding), this incident is being viewed within Pakistan as a major "humiliation" that resulted from the "paranoia permeating US airports."
From the Washington Post:
"A delegation of senior Pakistani military officials visiting the United States for a major defense conference headed home in protest Tuesday night after they said they were interrogated and rudely treated by security officials at Dulles International Airport.
The nine-member group of high-ranking Pakistani officers boarded United Airlines Flight 727 from Washington to Tampa late Sunday but were pulled off the plane after one of them "made a comment to a flight attendant," said Mike Trevino, a United spokesman.
United did not provide details, but Pakistani officials said the remark came from a general in the delegation who - weary of a long day of travel that began in Islamabad - said, "I hope this is my last flight," or words to that effect.
That sparked a call to Dulles law enforcement officials, who detained the delegation for 2.5 hours and refused to allow the officials to contact their embassy or the U.S. military officials who had invited them to visit, according to a Pakistani military official who spoke on condition of anonymity.
The Pakistanis were finally released after police at Dulles determined they did not pose a threat. But instead of proceeding to Tampa, the delegation was ordered to return to Pakistan by their military superiors in Islamabad, in protest of their treatment, the Pakistani official said, adding that they were "verbally abused." The group of officers spent the next 48 hours in Washington, waiting for the next available flight home, and were scheduled to depart the United States on Tuesday evening.
The Pakistani officers were originally en route to U.S. Central Command headquarters in Tampa to attend the annual conference of the U.S.-Pakistan Military Consultative Committee, said Maj. David Nevers, a Central Command spokesman. He said Centcom officials hoped to reschedule the conference."
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I am more concerned about Pakistan's documented and continuing support of the Taliban/Haqqani/Hizb-e-Islami insurgency - base area, funding, training, intel, logistics, etc...
ReplyDeleteThis seems to be a bigger problem than rude airport security, which I deal with every week.
Reading about the incident from several dif. news sources I found some of the reported exchanges and threats pretty amusing. Apparently one of the delegation threatened a stewardess with her job, a rather weighty threat in most rest of the world from a high ranking military delegation. Except, the stewardess probably took it to mean a belligerent and haughty passenger was making threats.
ReplyDeleteWould be all too funny if it didn't potentially give yet another bad PR example to be exploited for a rally that might get someone killed or to radicalize yet another would-be jihadi idiot. Oh well....................Although the fact that the delegation was not allowed to contact the embassy immediately is no doubt ugly.
Unfortunately, as a rather middle-eastern fellow my self who has been through a TSA moment or two I can just imagine the TSA types bathing in their minuscule moment of power.